Chapter 142: Humanity and Heaven
Li Anran took the invitation and took a look.
It said that the Great Emperor Qinghua of Dongji would hold a Fairy Tea Conference in the Jinguan Cave of Qianyuan Mountain in a month and invited him to go there to taste tea and discuss Taoism.
"You actually invited me...is it because of Nezha?" Li Anran was a little surprised.
He had heard about the Xian Tea Conference from Nezha. It could be said to be one of the highest-level events in the Xuanmen sect, held once every thousand years.
The fairy tea you taste is from the innate spiritual root of the enlightenment tea tree.
Although this enlightenment tea tree is not as good as the ten innate spiritual roots, it is also a rare treasure in the world. It can help people see through illusions and look directly at the great truth.
Even for the Golden Immortal, it will be of great benefit!
It is even more precious than the peaches!
Also, because this enlightenment tea matures once every thousand years, only nine taels of tea can be harvested each time.
There are only a handful of people in the Three Realms who are qualified to participate in the Xian Tea Conference, which is a symbol of status.
Li Anran angered the Jade Emperor because of the incident with Yao Ji and was unable to attend the Peach Banquet.
Nezha said that he would help Li Anran ask Taiyi Zhenren for the qualification to participate in the Xianming Conference.
However, this matter is of great importance and requires the approval of Taiyi Zhenren. Nezha did not dare to guarantee that he could do it, but only said that he would try his best.
Unexpectedly, he actually received an invitation from Taiyi Zhenren today.
"I already know about this. You guys can leave first."
Li Anran put away the invitation, locked Red Boy in the Sky Prison, and flew straight to the Yunlou Palace.
Yunlou Palace is Li Jing's residence, and Nezha also lives here.
However, Nezha and Li Jing have always been at odds with each other and wary of each other. One of them lives in the main hall of Yunlou Palace, and the other lives in a side hall farthest from the main hall.
Unless they went to court or went down to earth to catch monsters, they never met on weekdays.
When Li Anran arrived outside the Nezha Temple, Nezha was meditating and practicing in the temple. Upon hearing the report from the heavenly soldiers, he immediately stood up to greet them and said, " What a rare guest! You are a very busy prison god. How come you have time to come to my Yunluo Palace today?"
"You are the villain who is making the first move and then blaming others for your mistakes!"
Li Anran smiled and said, "Although I haven't visited you many times in these years, it's definitely not a small number. But what have you been busy with recently? You haven't come to me for a drink for a while!"
Nezha said: "If I don't practice quickly, you will surpass me! How can I have the energy to drink!"
As he spoke, Nezha led Li Anran into the hall and asked him to sit down.
Li Anran told Nezha that Taiyi Zhenren invited him to participate in the Xianming Conference and expressed his gratitude to Nezha.
Unexpectedly, Nezha was surprised: "Master invites you to attend the Xianming Conference? This matter has nothing to do with me, and I haven't had time to tell Master yet!"
Nezha's ears turned slightly red. It was not that he did not have time to tell Taiyi Zhenren, but that he had forgotten about it.
When I heard Li Anran mention it and solemnly expressed my feelings to him, I felt a little ashamed.
"It's not you?" Li Anran was stunned, and muttered in his heart: "Could it be Yang Jian?"
Nezha was also very curious about why Taiyi Zhenren invited Li Anran, and asked: "Li Anran, have you done anything during this period of time?"
Li Anran recalled and suddenly thought of the fake Tongtian who was imprisoned by him.
This fake Tongtian was the whetstone that Taishang Laojun found for the Eight Immortals of Shangdong Cave. Now that the whetstone has been taken away by him, it is time for Taishang Laojun to come and visit.
Moreover, Taishang Laojun is also qualified to ask for this invitation for him.
"Have you thought about it?" Nezha asked.
Li Anran nodded: "I have some clues."
Nezha wanted to ask more, but Li Anran had already stood up and said goodbye: "Brother Nezha, I have something else to do here, so I'll take my leave first!"
The Journey to the West was a battle of gamblers at Lingshan Mountain, and most of the upper-level gods and Buddhas in the Three Realms knew about it.
However, only a few people in the Three Realms know about the Eight Immortals of the Upper Cave, especially the fake Tongtian!
He had no way of explaining the source of his information and could only make excuses and delay the matter.
After leaving Yunlou Palace, Li Anran flew directly to the Temple of the God of Justice.
The only people who have the ability, qualifications and reasons to ask for this invitation are Taishang Laojun and Yang Jian.
As long as one can be eliminated, the answer must be the other.
The Temple of Justice was suspended alone in the void, and the sunlight seemed to avoid it. Even with the scorching sun overhead, there was still a solemn and cold feeling.
The once-in-a-decade examination of the gods had just ended not long ago, and the Temple of the God of Justice was much quieter than before.
However, Yang Jian's work is still busy.
All matters in the three realms will eventually be summarized in the Temple of Justice, and will either be handled by him himself or reported to the Jade Emperor.
During these hundreds of years, Yang Jian was almost trapped between the Temple of the God of Justice and the Lingxiao Palace by these things. He was busy day and night and couldn't get away.
When Li Anran and Yang Jian mentioned the Xian Tea Conference.
Yang Jian was stunned for a moment before he remembered this incident. He rummaged around on the table and soon found an invitation to the Xian Tea Conference.
Yang Jian's identity is extraordinary, so he is naturally qualified to participate in the Xianming Conference.
When the boy Jinxia brought him the invitation, he was busy dealing with a case in which a fairy was robbing a demon fairy's cave, so he just put the invitation aside.
After that, one thing after another, he was so busy that he put this matter out of his mind.
If Li Anran hadn't reminded him, he probably wouldn't have remembered it even after the Xianming Conference was over.
However, even now, Yang Jian couldn't spare the time to attend the banquet.
"Brother Li, if you want to go to the Xian Tea Conference, then... eh?"
Before Yang Jian finished speaking, he saw Li Anran take out an identical invitation.
"Uncle Taiyi also invited you?" Yang Jian looked a little surprised and confused.
Although Li Anran is the Prison God and Guansuo Star Lord, his status and cultivation are not good enough compared to Taiyi Zhenren, and he is not qualified to participate in the Xianming Conference!
"This matter may be related to Taishang Laojun."
Yang Jian knew the peculiarities of Li Anran's magic weapon (system), so Li Anran did not have too many concerns about him and said directly: "Second brother, when I was guarding the reincarnation of Emperor Donghua in Dongsheng Shenzhou, I once encountered an evil dragon..."
The life story of the fake Tongtian was related to the Zhuxian Formation. Li Anran was worried that something unexpected might happen, so he didn't even tell Yang Jian before.
At this time, he had already learned the Zhuxian Formation, so the fake Tongtian was of no use to him.
Li Anran directly told everything about his encounter with Chunying and the fake Tongtian.
Including the origin of the fake Tongtian, his relationship with Taishang Laojun Tathagata, and some of his own speculations about the Eight Immortals of the Upper Cave.
Yang Jian was stunned.
He never expected that Li Anran just went to Dongsheng Shenzhou and encountered so many things, and even had some relationship with the saint.
"It seems that Brother Li is also the one who will be afflicted by this catastrophe!"
When Yang Jian thought about the things that Li Anran had encountered after he went to heaven, he became more determined, yet a little worried.
The catastrophe is coming, and no living being can escape it!
However, there is still a huge difference between those who are destined to suffer the calamity and ordinary creatures in the calamity!
There are only two possible outcomes for those who are destined to have calamity: ascend to heaven in one step or be doomed to eternal damnation!
Ordinary creatures can wander between the two, and if they are lucky, it is possible for them to escape safely!
Yang Jian knew that he was the one who was destined to suffer the calamity.
In other words, in order to modify the Heavenly Rules, he took the initiative to enter the calamity and became the one who should be borne by the calamity.
That's why she made all kinds of arrangements, including but not limited to establishing a good relationship with Li Anran, just to make sure that the Third Holy Mother would be free from worries after something happened to her.
He never thought that the person he valued the most, Li Anran, was actually the same person who was destined to suffer the calamity as him!
Yang Jian didn't know whether this was a cause and effect entanglement in the human world that was destined to be doomed, or whether he should praise himself for having a good vision.
After Li Anran finished telling the story of the fake Tongtian, he told Yang Jian everything about how the monkey went to heaven to ask him to come down to earth to subdue demons and captured Red Boy, the son of the Bull Demon King, and brought him back to heaven.
Yang Jian's attitude towards this matter was much calmer.
He is just a Bull Demon King, no matter how deep his connection with Jiejiao is, it doesn’t matter!
Red Boy violated the laws of heaven, so he should be arrested. If the Bull Demon King has any objections, then he should be arrested as well!
It’s not a big deal!
Yang Jian asked: "Brother Li, what are you going to do?"
Li Anran said, "What else can I do? I can't change my mind. The Journey to the West and the Eight Immortals were all decided by the gods and Buddhas of the Three Realms. No matter what they want to do, I will push it to the Jade Emperor. If the Jade Emperor tells me to do it, I will do it. If the Jade Emperor doesn't let me do it, I won't do it!"
Li Anran’s attitude is very clear.
If the sky falls, there will be someone tall to hold it up!
He is a minister of the Heavenly Court, so he will push all the things onto the Jade Emperor. He can get by if he can, and leave if he can't. Anyway, he won't make any mistakes, and he won't take any responsibility or bear the blame!
Yang Jian was not surprised by Li Anran's attitude, but he was not optimistic about it at all.
In the midst of a catastrophe, ordinary creatures may be able to stay out of it, but for a person who is destined to suffer the catastrophe to want to stay out of it, that is a bit naive!
When the karma and calamity come together on you, there are many things you can’t avoid!
This was what the Jiejiao was like back then!
Yang Jian was very frank with Li Anran and told him his thoughts directly.
Li Anran doesn't think so.
"Second brother, the calamities in the past were unavoidable because they were created by heaven and earth. They are ruthless and have no desires. They treat all living beings equally."
"It's different now! Today's disasters are all designed by humans and set off in advance. If there are people involved, they will definitely not be ruthless and treat everyone equally. They will definitely be inseparable from the word "interest."
"I just want to let them know that provoking me is not worth the loss, or even a huge loss. Then they will naturally not drag me into the catastrophe."
Yang Jian was startled, and looked thoughtful.
He had previously looked at things from the perspective of fate and karma, and had never considered things from the perspective of human nature and interests.
At this moment, I suddenly realized that the catastrophe today is different from the ones I encountered before!
It is no longer just the laws of nature that dominate all this, but also the laws of humanity!
The role of human heart, human nature, and human desires is more important than ever before!
Human heart, human nature, human desires...humanity...
The weight of humanity is increasing!
It was as if a bolt of lightning flashed through Yang Jian's head, and an idea suddenly popped up in his mind.
During the catastrophe of Conferred Gods, the saints knew the catastrophe in advance, made plans in advance, and plotted against each other. Wasn't this the work of human nature?
Also, there was the Lich Catastrophe even earlier!
Although his master Jade Ding Zhenren did not say it explicitly, it can be seen from the information he occasionally revealed.
The conflict between the two witch tribes will become more and more serious until a war breaks out that almost destroys the world.
There is a mysterious sect behind the scenes, especially the shadow of the Two Saints from the West!
Isn't this humanity interfering with the operation of nature?
Humanity is growing!
The way of heaven is declining!
Yang Jian came to a conclusion.
And what led to the beginning of all this...
It was when Daoist Patriarch Hongjun was preaching in Zixiao Palace!
Yang Jian's pupils suddenly shrank, and he instantly felt a tingling sensation on his scalp.
That’s right, it was Daozu Hongjun’s preaching that awakened the Six Saints, Three Thousand Great Powers and even all living beings in the Three Realms and made them realize the existence of the Heavenly Dao!
From then on, all sentient beings in the three realms will consider cause and effect, karma, luck and disaster!
It was also from that time that everything they did could be said to be interfering with the way of nature with humanity!
Complying with the will of heaven is humanity interfering with the operation of heaven's laws!
Going against the will of Heaven is humanity interfering with the operation of Heaven's will!
It’s just that the degree of interference between the two sides is different!
And now, humanity is no longer interfering with the way of heaven, but trying to control the way of heaven!
Yang Jian suddenly thought of a possibility.
Could it be that the protagonist of this catastrophe is not Xuanmen Buddhism, nor the sacred mountain in heaven, but the struggle between humanity and heaven?
Yang Jian's breathing stagnated.
Extreme fear made his whole body tremble.
If his guess is true, then what the gods and Buddhas of the three realms are doing now is not to eliminate karma and resolve disasters, but to rush all the way to the outbreak of catastrophe!
The battle between the wizard and the lich crashed into the pillar of heaven, Mount Buzhou, and almost destroyed the entire prehistoric continent.
The conflict between Chan and Jie broke the ancient world into four continents, almost causing a repeat of the events of earth, water, fire and wind.
What will the conflict between humanity and the way of heaven be like?
Yang Jian couldn't imagine.
But he knew that it would be a scene countless times more horrific and tragic than the Lich Catastrophe and the Conferred God Catastrophe!
"Second brother? Second brother?"
Li Anran called out several times before Yang Jian came back to his senses.
"What's wrong with you?" Li Anran noticed that Yang Jian's face was pale and his forehead was covered with cold sweat, and he was a little confused.
Yang Jian is a cultivator at the Daluo realm, with the Three Flowers Gathered at the Top of the Head and the Five Qis Converging to the Origin. How could he look so weak and panicked?
It can't be that he was scared, right?
As soon as this thought came to Li Anran's mind, he amused himself.
Who or what happened in these three realms could scare the God of Justice Yang Jian like this?
Even if a saint were to appear in the world, it would probably be difficult!
"nothing."
Yang Jian forced a smile and did not tell Li Anran his guess.
Firstly, his speculation was too bizarre and shocking, and there was no evidence at all, as if he was suffering from a temporary hysteria.
Secondly, he himself hadn't thought it through.
He wanted to wait until he had thought it over more clearly, and preferably found some evidence, before telling Li Anran, Taiyi Tianzun and others about this matter.
Yang Jian took a deep breath, calmed his mind, and said: "Brother Li, just do these things as you say. As long as you insist that you are acting according to the rules of heaven and don't know anything else, you don't have to worry about anyone. If something goes wrong, I will take care of it."
